Sections
Altered Carbon is little concerned with the philosophical implications of its incredible premise, preferring to put all its focus on the political aspects of its fantastic world. Written by Richard Morgan, this cyberpunk novel is not interested in how the characters deal with issues of memory and identity, but in how they manage to resist the constant oppression of a capitalist society that never stops discovering new ways to abuse those elements.
The story opens with the protagonist, Takeshi Kovacs, being killed by the police. When he wakes up, his conscience is already installed in another body, and his only chance of freedom is tied to a single condition: he is hired by [...]
The Red Strings Club is a cyberpunk bartender game in which you pour special drinks to get information out of people. Although the game succeeds in developing its themes of free will, power, and (the lack of) agency, its all-over-the-place structure hampers some parts of the experience.
You mainly play as Donovan, the bartender of The Red Strings Club that is an information broker on the side. Donovan can “use spirits to tune into customers’ emotions,” to allow them “to savour, mourn, or contemplate their souls’ fundamental sentiments.” In practice, this means each customer will have some circles over them displaying certain states of mind, like anxiety, regret, and pride. [...]